Tag: SWAT

The suspect, identified as Eddie Ray Routh, 25, was pursued to a house in Lancaster by officers, including a local SWAT team. Routh again try to flee in a vehicle but was stopped about 9 p.m. after spikes were laid across a road, Bryant said.

“The suspect has been caught and is in custody in Lancaster,” the sheriff said. Erath County sheriff’s investigators and Texas Rangers were securing a capital murder warrant, he said.

Witnesses told sheriff’s investigators that the gunman opened fire on the two men around 3:30 p.m., then fled in a pickup truck belonging to one of the victims. The sheriff’s department didn’t get a call until around 6 p.m.

Why the 2-and-a-half hour delay in the police getting a call? Something does not add up about that. Again, details are somewhat sketchy, and I am still looking, and re-reading everything I can find. More updates when I can

Today, U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder regarding recent reports that several conservative political commentators have been targeted with harassing and frightening actions. Chambliss demanded that Holder examine these cases to determine if federal laws have been violated.

These dangerous hoaxes, also known as “SWAT-ting,” occur when a perpetrator contacts local police to report a violent incident at a target’s home. These callers are believed to utilize voice-over IP (VOIP) and other less-traditional telecommunications methods to make the call appear to come from the target residence and to hide the caller’s true identity.

ABC News spoke with two prominent conservative bloggers who were victims of SWAT-ting, a hoax tactic used by some hackers to infiltrate a victim’s phone system, often through voice over IP (VOIP) technology to make calls appear as if they are coming from a residence. The perpetrators call police to report a violent crime at that home to which the police respond, sometimes with SWAT teams.

(Washington, DC) – The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which focuses on constitutional law, announced today it is providing legal representation to a top conservative blogger and his organization that represents hundreds of bloggers who are facing threats and intimidation tactics by those opposed to their viewpoint.

“Free speech is under attack,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ. “Conservative writers are now facing threats against themselves, their families, and their livelihoods merely because they’ve aggressively investigated the history and funding of radical liberals. The ACLJ has a long history of successfully defending free speech, and we look forward to defeating this latest attempt to threaten and intimidate conservatives into silence.”

The issue involves targeting a number of conservative bloggers with a dangerous and illegal tactic that’s become known as SWAT-ing (making false 911 calls sending police to the homes of bloggers, claiming a crime has occurred.) The tactic is used in retaliation for posts the conservative bloggers have written.

The ACLJ is representing Ali Akbar, a top blogger and president of the National Bloggers Club, a coalition of 300 conservative bloggers who reach millions of readers. Akbar has seen his mother’s home photographed and placed on the internet. He has also received formal notification that he may soon be sued for publishing truthful information about radical liberals and their wealthy donors.

“I’m grateful for the support of the ACLJ, and I’m confident we’ll defeat any and all legal challenges to our fundamental right to free speech,” said Akbar. “We will not be deterred in our quest for the truth.”

The ACLJ will aggressively defend the constitutionally-protected free speech rights of Akbar and his organizations.

The ACLJ’s representation of Akbar comes as Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) is calling on Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate the SWAT-ting cases to see if federal laws have been violated. In a letter to the Attorney General, Sen. Chambliss wrote: “Any potentially criminal action that incites fear, seeks to silence a dissenting opinion, and collaterally wastes the resources of law enforcement should be given close scrutiny at all levels. . . Regardless of any potential political differences that may exist, threats and intimidation have no place in our national political discourse.”

That is big! The ACLJ gets it done in the court room

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A quick round up of the latest for your perusal. I am TIRED, long day at work, and car trouble on the way home, so my brain is fried, too fried for deep thought right now. But, through the magic of linking some other bloggers who are not so damned tired I can still bring you up to date!

Today, U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder regarding recent reports that several conservative political commentators have been targeted with harassing and frightening actions. Chambliss demanded that Holder examine these cases to determine if federal laws have been violated.

These dangerous hoaxes, also known as “SWAT-ting,” occur when a perpetrator contacts local police to report a violent incident at a target’s home. These callers are believed to utilize voice-over IP (VOIP) and other less-traditional telecommunications methods to make the call appear to come from the target residence and to hide the caller’s true identity.

In response, a dispatcher sends a SWAT team or other police unit in a heightened state of readiness to the unsuspecting target’s residence. Targets only learn of these false reports when a large police presence descends upon their homes.

In the letter, Chambliss states that “Any potentially criminal action that incites fear, seeks to silence a dissenting opinion, and collaterally wastes the resources of law enforcement should be given close scrutiny at all levels… Regardless of any potential political differences that may exist, threats and intimidation have no place in our national political discourse. Those who choose to enter into that political discourse should not have to worry about potential threats to their or their family’s safety.”

A copy of the signed letter is attached, and the full text of the letter is below:

June 5, 2012

The Honorable Eric Holder

Attorney General

Department of Justice

950 Pennsylvania Avenue. NW, Suite 5111

Washington, DC 20530-0009

Dear Attorney General Holder:

I am writing with concern regarding recent reports that several members of the community of online political commentators have been targeted with harassing and frightening actions. Any potentially criminal action that incites fear, seeks to silence a dissenting opinion, and collaterally wastes the resources of law enforcement should be given close scrutiny at all levels.

According to these individuals’ reports, these dangerous hoaxes, also known as “SWAT-ting,” have a perpetrator contacting a local police department to report some type of violent incident at the home of the target. It is believed that these callers utilize some of the less traditional telecommunications methods, including voice over IP (VOIP) to make the call appear as though it is coming from the target residence and to better hide the true identity of the caller.

In response, a dispatcher then sends a large number of understandably anxious police units, in a heightened state of readiness, to the home of the still unsuspecting target. The first that the target or their unsuspecting family learns of this false report to law enforcement is when they are shocked to see an abnormal police presence descending on their residence.

The use of SWAT-ting as a harassment tool is apparently not new, but its use as a tool for targeting political speech appears to be a more recent development. During the last year, some of the more widely reported cases of SWAT-ting have taken place against blog operators across the country, including in Georgia. The emerging pattern is both disturbing and dangerous.

While these incidences are currently small in number, and have fortunately not led to any accidental physical harm, they are extremely concerning. The perpetrators appear to be targeting individuals who are vigorously exercising their First Amendment rights to political speech. As you know, these reported efforts to intimidate those who choose to enter the political forum and express their opinions are in conflict with the founding principles of our nation.

Regardless of any potential political differences that may exist, threats and intimidation have no place in our national political discourse. Those who choose to enter into that political discourse should not have to worry about potential threats to their or their family’s safety.

While I am certain that local law enforcement is reviewing each of these instances, I am asking you to please look into each of these cases as well to determine if any federal laws may have been violated. Future targets of SWAT-ting, whether engaged in political speech or not, may not be so fortunate as to escape physical harm.

I appreciate your attention to this matter, and I look forward to your response no later than June 29, 2012. Please feel free to contact my office with any questions or comments that you may have.

Encouraging, although Holder will not do one damn thing about it, but still, it is a nice step.

New developments today in the story of convicted terrorist bomber-turned-progressive activist Brett Kimberlin: Sources report that conservative New Media activists believe that Kimberlin — whose activities are funded by the tax-exempt 501(c) non-profits Velvet Revolution and the Justice Through Music Project — showed up in April at BlogCon, a conference sponsored by FreedomWorks and the Franklin Center.

Did a left-wing activist infiltrate BlogCon Charlotte? Try to intimidate bloggers on Twitter? Did this person know someone who may have hacked Twitter accounts, and have his real name accidentally exposed in the process? And did this person know of efforts to put conservatives in TwitterGulag?

A photo of Kimberlin was circulated among online activists and, sources say, it was confirmed that Kimberlin showed up at the hotel in Charlotte, N.C., where BlogCon was held. Sources say Kimberlin was seen collecting information about the conference proceedings and was eventually escorted from the premises by hotel security.

Kimberlin has been accused of engaging in a campaign of harassment and intimidation against conservative bloggers, including Patrick “Patterico” Frey, Aaron Walker and National Bloggers Club presidentAli Akbar. The case has drawn widespread attention, and major news organizations are taking increased interest in the story

WASHINGTON, DC — The National Bloggers Club, Inc. is announcing that it will continue to raise funds to provide financial relief to member Aaron Walker. An appeal to the peace order granted by Judge C.J. Vaughey was filed Monday.Last week the Maryland judge issued a 6-month peace order and jailed attorney Aaron Walker, preventing him from mentioning Brett Kimberlin in public. A Blogger and Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney wrote of this order that, “this is a clear-cut case of a First Amendment violation — about as clear-cut as you’ll ever hear.” Since then, Walker has been working with a new legal team and the National Bloggers Club to legally restore his free speech rights.“We’ve got over a dozen lawyers coordinating on this now, volunteering their time. Aaron’s first amendment rights are being violated when he is barred from even being able to publicly mention the case or Kimberlin’s violent past,” said Bloggers Club president Ali A. Akbar.Akbar continued, “Yesterday they came after the Bloggers Club and my family — my family. We’re not stopping. We’ve got to raise $5,000 more dollars to continue to stand with Aaron Walker and I’m positive supporters will continue to step up.”The National Bloggers Club is working to promote KimberlinFiles.org where supporters continue to give financial and written support to this cause.In keeping with the ruling of the court, Walker’s response was simply, “thank you”.

When I asked Ali Akbar of the National Bloggers Club for help with a website/infrastructure to support the blogger targets of convicted bomber/online terrorist Brett Kimberlin two weeks ago, he didn’t hesitate or waver. He stepped up to the plate because he believes in free speech and new media. I knew and respected him from his past work on grass-roots conservative campaigns and online projects. I was honored to join the NBC board of directors when he asked me late last year. There is no vast, deeply-funded conspiracy behind how it all came together — as some deranged progressive operatives (who habitually indulge in such rancid psychological projection) are claiming. I simply asked for help with organizing/fundraising tasks that were way beyond my paygrade. Ali volunteered to help and hasn’t stopped. The blogosphere owes him bottomless thanks.Despite threats made to Ali’s family by Kimberlin associates and new legal threats waged by one Kevin Zeese, he and the NBC are not backing down. They are standing with the Kimberlin targets who continue to fight these ongoing menaces. Joining the battle: many, many excellent First Amendment lawyers (including Eugene Volokh, who on Tuesday noted his pro bono involvement at his blog.) . . .

Aaron Walker, whose complaint against convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin became a conservativecause célèbre this past week, was reportedly taken into custody today after a court hearing in Rockville, Maryland.

One person who attended the hearing in Montgomery County District Court said that Kimberlin asserted that Walker’s continued blogging represented a violation of a “peace order” Kimberlin had obtained against the Virginia attorney, who says Kimberlin tried to “frame” him for assault earlier this year.

During the course of the hearing — which reportedly lasted about an hour — Judge C.J. Vaughey appeared to become increasingly hostile toward Walker, who was taken into custody when the hearing concluded.

UPDATE II: A copy of the “final peace order” (time-stamped 10:52 a.m.) states that Kimberlin is “in fear of imminent serious bodily harm” as a result of a “countless number” of death threats, and that “there is clear and convincing evidence that [Walker] is likely to commit a prohibited act in the future against [Kimberlin].”

It went bad for Walker pretty quickly. . . .
Judge Vaughey had read up on the matter, knew Kimberlin’s history of felony convictions, but clearly was technically ignorant of even basic facts about what Twitter is, in one instance point saying “He Googled you 500,000 times” through the Tubes or whatever. The Judge had identified himself, earlier, as being “of the Royal Typewriter Generation,” and at another point, when confronted with the voluminous material from both sides, asked “don’t people have jobs, who reads this stuff?”
That said, Judge Vaughey did know a lot about the kind of respect a Judge is owed. He also, again, knew all about Kimberlin, saying “even a prostitute is entitled to protection.”
And Walker pissed him off. So did Kimberlin, but Walker identified himself as a Yale-trained lawyer, albeit one who was representing himself. Kimberlin made any number of allegations — essentially, everything that was said about his side -– issuing death threats, harming business interests, summoning SWAT teams to the home–was said by Kimberlin to have been done by Walker’s side.
The pair went back and forth, back and forth, with Walker getting increasingly flustered, and the Judge finally asking, “what did they tell you in Yale Law School about interrupting a judge?”

That Kimberlin is the plaintiff in such an action — claiming that a law-abiding attorney is somehow threatening the safety of a convicted violent felon — is deeply ironic. Federal prosecutors once hoped that Kimberlin would never again be able to “terrorize any other citizen,” yet he is now terrorizing them just as surely as he ever did during his infamous days as the Speedway Bomber.

If I read this correctly, Aaron Walker is in trouble because Kimberlin claims that his blogging has somehow led to other people making death threats. That doesn’t seem to pass the First Amendment smell test. Only if Walker were inciting those threats in a way that passed Brandenburg scrutiny would that work, and I don’t believe that’s the case at all. At any rate, under this approach George Zimmerman ought to be able to jail any number of journalists. . . .

Freedom of speech is not under attack, it’s on life support, if that. Last week I blogged about terrorist Brett Kimberlin threatening bloggers here. This violent convicted terrorist Bomber is now a leftist darling and has been given millions by progressives.

I have seen no claim that Walker himself made any threats against Brett Kimberlin. Or that he contacted Brett Kimberlin. Walker was arrested because he wrote facts and opinions about Brett Kimberlin and other people supposedly made threats.

American Pundit has the story, and again, remember that Norway has strict gun control laws, which the Left insists will keep us safe. Of course they also tell us that we do not “need” guns we have police. Yeah, right

The psychopath who shot up Utoya island was the only one with a gun. See, Norwayallows civilians to have certain guns, but usually for hunting and sport shooting. In fact, possession of a handgun apparently has to be justified by some sort of sporting hobby.

To own a gun in Norway, one must document a use for the gun. By far, the most common grounds for civilian ownership are hunting and sports shooting, in that order. Other needs can include special guard duties or self defense, but the first is rare and the second is practically never accepted as a reason for gun ownership.

So once again the only people truly armed are the criminals. Law-abiding citizens who would use weapons to defend themselves and/or others are stopped from doing so.

The most recent news accounts indicate that the gunman shot up Utoya Island for an hour and a half before he was finally stopped. The SWAT team that wounded and captured him arrived at the island 40 minutes after they were called.

The police team had to be dispatched from Oslo. Then they had to gear up. Then they had to get a boat. Then they had to make their way to the island. Then they had to find the guy.

All while the suspect was shooting-up the island, leaving dead children in his wake.

As the death toll continues to rise in Norway’s apparently related bombing and shooting attacks, a few truths are once again revealed for any who would see:

Unarmed victims are defenseless and easy prey for any evil lunatic bent on slaughtering them at will. The adults at the youth camp were utterly unprepared to protect themselves, let alone their charges.

People instinctively don’t question an armed man if he appears to be a police officer. Many of the same people react with horror at the sight of an armed citizen.

The best defense against an active shooter is others with guns—it was not the unarmed who took the suspect into custody.

Once more, “gun control” has proven useless. Many reports, if accurate, say the gunman used “automatic weapons,” which, except for some tightly regulated collector exemptions, are banned from civilian ownership in Norway.

Once more, the race is on to tar an entire demographic for the actions of a deranged and monstrous individual, and to conflate “conservatives” with violent extremists.

And once more, expect to hear renewed calls for more citizen disarmament, that is, an expansion of the potential victim pool for those who count on such measures to make their diabolical tasks all the more easily executed.

The fact is if you disarm the public, you must protect that public or slaughter the public. This is what happens time and time again and the same people come out screaming about the gun he used, rather than the laws that prevented OTHER guns to be a deterrent.

As I said yesterday, the Left will try to squeeze every last drop of propaganda out of this, because to Leftists, the end they seek justifies every means.

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This should really have everyone’s attention. The Pakistani military has finally started to move against the Taliban fighters. But, as EdMorrissey who I feel is more qualified to speak on this than I am, points out it might be too little, too late. Be sure to read the whole thing.

The Pakistani Army has finally begun to act against the Taliban and its allies in Swat and Buner, but the effort may be too little, too late. The government in Islamabad told Swat residents to flee, andmore than 500,000 refugeesmay descend on the capital as the Army prepares to dislodge the extremists after an ill-advised truce allowed them to seize control and initiative. But will the Army actually act on behalf of the tottering civilian government?